TO PALACE: MOVE ON, STOP BICKERING, FOCUS ON HELPING PEOPLE, COUNTRY
MANILA, APRIL 18, 2011 (TRIBUNE) By Gerry Baldo - Members of the political opposition in the House of Representatives yesterday censured Malacañang for continuing to foment anger and vindictiveness against non-allies.
The opposition lawmakers said "vindictiveness" will not do any good to a government espousing the right path.
Maguindanao Rep. Simeon Datumanong (photo at left) and Davao del Sur Rep. Marc Douglas Cagas IV, (photo at right) both members of the House minority bloc, said the best thing that the Aquino administration should do now is reconcile with the opposition.
"The best thing to do is concentrate our efforts in helping our country and people on existing problems instead of throwing mud at each other," Datumanong stressed.
Cagas, for his part, said all groups, especially Malacañang, should stop the blame game in finding solutions to the country's complex problems.
"If I were President Noy, I would make my own decision of healing so that we can move forward and make concrete and long-term solutions to our problems that all administrations in the past had like poverty, unemployment, inflation, among others," he added.
The opposition lawmakers were reacting to the recent filing of graft cases against allies of former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Arroyo including among others Ang Galing Pinoy Rep. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo, Local Water and Utilities Administrator Prospero Pichay, former Sorsogon Gov. Raul Lee and former Quezon City Rep. Nanette Daza.
Former Agriculture Secretary Luis "Cito" Lorenzo and former Undersecretary Jocelyn "Joc-joc" Bolante, who was alleged to have been the architect of the fertilizer fund scam, were also charged with plunder.
"There can be no true progress and justice without going after the raiders of the coffers of the government. Besides the current administration has improved and is continuing to improve the economic situation of the country. It is on the right track," said Citizen's Battle Against Corruption Rep. Sherwin Tugna.
President Aquino on Wednesday in Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, said that there were numerous anomalies during the Arroyo administration and that the funds that were misused in government projects could have been spent on programs that would benefit soldiers and policemen.
Former President Arroyo, on Friday, lashed at the Aquino administration, saying there was a "vacuum" in government leadership.
She said the Aquino government has failed to address the rising prices of basic commodities.
Meanwhile, House Deputy Minority Leader Zambales Rep. Milagros Magsaysay said
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad should account for government-funded projects to ensure transparency in the Aquino administration
She called on Abad to submit a list of all government projects to the House of Representatives.
"I just hope that they also inform us where and what they are implementing so that we can help monitor them," she added.
Abad claimed that almost 50 percent or P800 billion of the P1.645-trillion national budget for 2011 was released since the approval of the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for 2011 last December.
Abad said the release of the funds had speeded up projects in the first half of the year.
Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. shared Abad's view, saying the release of huge chunks of the national budget is needed to pump-prime the country's economy.
Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya Jr., chairman of the House committee on appropriations, said the big release of public funds at the early part of the year would show that the President is effective on its fiscal management program.
"Yes that was the plan (huge release of public funds) and it is good news that we are able to meet the plan. It likewise reflects effective fiscal management with revenues able to meet planned expenditure despite events beyond our control such as the Libyan crisis. Right path is a righteous path indeed," Abaya said.
But Negros Occidental Rep. Alfredo Benitez was surprised at Abad statement.
He said that funds intended for the priority development assistance fund or pork barrel for the congressional districts have not yet been released.
"There was no release of the countrywide development fund (CDF) or pork barrel yet," Benitez said.
FROM MANILA STANDARD
Lakas still willing to work with Aquino govt
THE dominant opposition party on Friday said it will pursue a policy of "critical cooperation" with the Aquino administration, its "agenda of vengeance and fault-finding" notwithstanding.
In a statement, Lakas-Kampi CMD president Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. and the party's chairman, House Minority Leader Edcel Lagman, said they would continue to point out areas in which the administration failed to address poverty and hunger, corruption and worsening economic indicators such as high inflation, increasing unemployment and diminishing investor and consumer confidence.
"The Aquino administration's agenda of vengeance and fault-finding, as well as populist propaganda cannot replace resolute performance and meaningful solutions," the Lakas-Kampi CMD statement said.
"Since day one of the Aquino administration, the House Minority has been reasonably critical of the haphazard policies and lackadaisical performance of President Aquino and some members of the Cabinet," Lagman said in a separate statement.
He said the opposition was going to maintain its tempered posture and would not engage in "virulent and baseless opposition."
Agusan del Norte Rep. Jose Aquino II, the party's new secretary general, said Lakas had a "higher duty" to support government policies that hasten economic development and intensify efforts to fight poverty and official corruption.
Aquino said the party was prepared and willing to cooperate with the administration on those policies "as a matter of duty," but would speak out when the administration strayed.
Aquino assumed the post of secretary-general after Revilla became party president at a meeting of the Lakas-Kampi executive council last February.
Aquino recalled that the country achieved unprecedented economic growth, prosperity and stability under the leadership of former President Gloria Arroyo, Lakas-Kampi chairman from 2001 to 2010.
"The party did not achieve this through political confrontation—but through the power of alliances and national consensus," Aquino said.
He said politics should build consensus on government policies and programs that would "hasten development, eradicate official corruption and create a national economy that benefits all." Christine F. Herrera
'Let people judge GMA' By Aurea Calica (The Philippine Star) Updated April 17, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang belittled yesterday former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's warning of a "vacuum of leadership" under President Aquino and said it would be up to the people to judge her and her nine-year administration.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said Arroyo was in no position to issue such a declaration because it was the problems that she had left behind that the Aquino administration was trying to address.
"We owe it to the people to let them know what happened before and what we're doing to address (these problems)," Valte said.
She said only the people can tell if Arroyo has the credibility to attack the Aquino administration.
"Maybe it's best to let the people speak because if we do the talking, they might say we're just trying to defend President Aquino," Valte said in Filipino.
In Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija on Wednesday, President Aquino told soldiers of anomalies that occurred during the Arroyo administration, including the alleged overpricing of nautical roads for the roll-on, roll-off projects.
He said the funds misused could have been spent for building more houses for soldiers and policemen.
Earlier, the National Food Authority also exposed the billions in debt incurred during the time of Arroyo as well as the anomalies in rice importation.
Arroyo's son, party-list Rep. Juan Miguel Arroyo, is also facing tax evasion charges.
The Palace said it would start pressing charges against concerned Arroyo officials only after Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez is impeached.
With her record of sitting on cases involving Arroyo and her officials, Gutierrez can never be expected to decide fairly on new cases to be filed against officials of the previous administration, Malacañang said.
A staunch House ally of the former chief executive had even warned of a "frontal attack" on the Aquino administration in response to the filing of a tax case against party-list Rep. Arroyo. But prominent opposition members distanced themselves from the threat made by Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez.
Arroyo, in an interview with The STAR at her residence in Quezon City on Friday, said there was a "vacuum of leadership" under the Aquino administration, judging from its failure to address crises like the rising prices of fuel and basic commodities as well as the Quirino Grandstand hostage tragedy.
She claimed the Aquino administration had done nothing but "demonize" her.
But Valte said whatever mistakes committed by the current administration paled in comparison to the severity of corruption during Arroyo's nine-year rule.
Valte cited as example the excessive bonuses, allowances and salaries of executives of government-owned and controlled corporations during the Arroyo administration and which Aquino eventually ordered stopped.
"Some GOCC (executives) really abused the benefits they were according themselves," Valte said, noting that after Aquino ordered the cuts, the government was able to save a lot of money for the social programs of the administration.
"This is only one of the concrete examples so certainly, we do not agree with the allegations that we purely criticize and are not doing our jobs," Valte said.
During her time, Arroyo was accused of cheating her way to the presidency in 2004 and she and her husband Jose Miguel Arroyo had been dragged into controversies such as the fertilizer fund scam and the national broadband network deal with Chinese firm ZTE.
She was also heavily criticized for allegedly giving away money to stop her impeachment and buy the support of the military and local officials.
The election loss of most of the former president's allies was seen as proof of the people's outrage against her leadership.
Valte also said Arroyo and her allies could not seem to agree on how to go about performing their role as opposition members.
"Maybe there is confusion of leadership within Lakas (party) because their statements do not jibe. The other day they said there would be frontal attack, now there would be critical cooperation. So, at this point, we don't know what's really happening and we are quite confused," Valte said.
Valte said an opposition is part of a democracy and "is really there to take the administration to task for what it has been doing for the people and, again, we have no problem with that."
But she said the discussions and debates must be based on issues and they were hoping for real "critical cooperation" from the members of the opposition.
Meanwhile, Sen. Francis Escudero asked the former president and her supporters to shut up and stop criticizing the less-than-a-year-old administration of President Aquino.
Escudero said Arroyo should ponder the nine years she had wasted instead of finding fault with the Aquino administration. "She had nine years and yet look what happened," he said.
"Did the lives of Filipinos improve during her nine-year administration? No. We still have many problems," Escudero said in Filipino.
He said Arroyo should wait for the proper time to air her grievances and not rush to judgment. - With Edith Regalado
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